Ménard’s vision and processing ability in conjunction with his physical gifts made him quite the dominant cycle player for Québec Black throughout camp. He did most of his damage along the wall, often fighting through contact to maintain possession and make distribute the puck shrewdly in order to extend cycle sequences. He flashed a bit of deception in his playmaking, utilizing look offs to get attention off his intended target and open seams for him to slide pucks through to create chances in the middle of the ice as he traversed along the wall. While his skating isn’t necessarily dynamic, he possesses enough power in his lower half to really dig into his pivots along the perimeter, waiting until the last second to spin off a defender and work his way into space in order to extend his puck touches. He was fully engaged in board battles as well, often providing support along the boards in order to fish pucks out below the goal line before taking it to the front of the net looking to create in tight.

It was Menard’s attention to detail in all three zones which really caught my attention throughout the games I saw of him here. His physical maturity allowed him to win board battles all over the ice, allowing him to extend possession time in the offensive zone and help facilitate breakouts in his own end by supporting his defenders down low. He was a physical presence in the neutral zone as well, delivering well-timed and solid hits to puck-carriers which helped kill rush plays and allowed for counterattacks the other way. He was able to hold onto pucks for longer in the offensive zone thanks in large part to his puck protection abilities while also making shrewd decisions with the puck that allowed the cycle game to continue. He took really good angles as a forechecker as well which allowed him to close off defenders below the goal line and create loose puck opportunities. He flashed a bit of a deception in his playmaking arsenal at times, using look offs and no look passes to open up seams and create a bit more space for his intended target who could then get a quick shot off from a dangerous area along the interior.